John Laffey

PROF

Accepting PhD Students

PhD projects

MSC therapy for late phase sepsis.
Our objective is to examine the therapeutic potential of MSC therapy in late phase sepsis, examine their mechanisms of action on the innate and adaptive immune responses, and determine whether enhancing their immunomodulatory potential can increase their therapeutic potential for patients suffering from sepsis.
Our hypothesis is that understanding and optimizing the immunomodulatory effects of MSCs will enhance their therapeutic potential for patients suffering from sepsis. MSCs will likely be effective when used at 2 discrete points in the later phases of sepsis. We hypothesize that MSC delivery after the initial hyper-inflammatory phase (the current research focus), i.e. during the transition to the hypo-immune phases will facilitate restoration of immune homeostasis and prevent transition into late sepsis. Our second major hypothesis is that MSCs will restore immune effector cell function in later sepsis, again restoring immune effector cell function, promoting bacterial clearance and recovery.

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Personal profile

Biography

John Laffey is the Professor of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine at the School of Medicine of the National University of Ireland, and a Consultant in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine at Galway University Hospitals.

Research Interests

Professor Laffeys major research interest is centred on investigation of the pathophysiology of, and development of therapeutic strategies for Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), a devastating disease which causes severe respiratory failure in critically ill patients, and for which there are currently no specific therapies. More people die every year from ARDS than from other better known diseases such as HIV, Breast Cancer or Asthma. Professor Laffey founded and lead the lung biology group at NUI Galway. His research group are currently conducting studies into the pathogenesis of ventilation and sepsis Acute Lung Injury. The current focus is on the investigation of the therapeutic potential of gene and stem cell based therapies for Acute Lung Injury. This work is being done in collaboration with colleagues from the Regenerative Medicine Institute (REMEDI) at NUI Galway. A long term focus of Professor Laffeys work had been on determining the safety and therapeutic potential of hypercapnic acidosis in septic and inflammatory disease models of Acute Lung Injury. Professor Laffey is a principal investigator at the National Centre for Biomedical Engineering Sciences, and a Clinical Trials Investigator at the HRB Clinical Research Facility at the National University of Ireland, Galway. The translation of promising therapeutic strategies emerging from these pre-clinical studies to the clinical setting, through the Clinical Research Facility, and in collaboration with the Irish Critical Care Trials group, is a priority. Professor Laffey is co-principal investigator in the first investigator led multi-centre trial conducted in critically ill patients in Ireland. This study, termed the HARP-2 study, aims to determine whether statin therapy might help people suffering from ARDS. Additional clinical research interests include the investigation of the utility of novel devices and technologies for management of the airway, and investigation of novel approaches to postoperative analgesia.

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  • SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being
  • SDG 6 - Clean Water and Sanitation
  • SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
  • SDG 9 - Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
  • SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities
  • SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production

Education/Academic qualification

BSc, MB, Bch, BAO, MD, MA, FFARCSI

Accepting PhD Students

  • Accepting PhD Students

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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years

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